SETTING THE SCENEThe University of Cincinnati baseball team resumes BIG EAST Conference play when its hosts the No. 9-ranked University of Louisville Cardinals for a three-game series Friday through Sunday.Game 1 of the series is slated to begin 6:30 p.m. Friday at Marge Schott Stadium, with redshirt freshman right-handed pitcher Connor Walsh scheduled to make his eighth start of the season for the Bearcats.The second game of the series will be held at Great American Ball Park as part of the inaugural Cincinnati Reds Collegiate Invitational. UC and UofL will play the second game of a doubleheader Saturday, with Game 1 featuring the Reds vs. the Washing Nationals, which has a 1:10 p.m. first pitch. The Bearcats and Cardinals will begin 30 minutes following the conclusion of Reds-Nationals, marking the first NCAA game played at GABP in its 11th season as the home of the Reds. True freshman RHP Mitch Patishall will get the start for Cincinnati in Game 2 of the series.The third and final game of the series will begin 1 p.m. Sunday at Marge Schott Stadium, with UC's starting pitcher to be announced.Cincinnati is coming off two midweek games in which the Bearcats defeated Wright State 6-2 on Tuesday in Dayton, Ohio and earned a 9-7 walk-off win against Toledo on Wednesday. Prior to the two midweek games, UC went 1-2 BIG EAST road trip last weekend against St. John's in Queens, N.Y.Bearcats freshman infielder Ian Happ, who hit a walk-off home run Wednesday vs. Toledo, has reached base safely in the past 21 ballgames. He leads the BIG EAST in walks and ranks tied for third in doubles.Live video and stats for all three games against the Cardinals will be available at GoBEARCATS.A live radio broadcast of all three games vs. UofL can be heard on 1480 WDJO-AM.Follow the Bearcats baseball program on Twitter @UCincyBaseball and @CoachClearyUC.

UC To PLAY FIRST NCAA GAME AT GABPCincinnati Reds Chief Operating Officer Phillip J. Castellini announced Feb. 8 that the UC baseball team will host Louisville in the inaugural Reds Collegiate Invitational as part of a doubleheader on Saturday, April 6, 2013 at Great American Ball Park.In a matchup between 2012 National League division champions, the Reds play the Washington Nationals at 1:10 p.m. Following a 30-minute intermission, the Bearcats and the Cardinals will begin a BIG EAST Conference tilt, marking the first NCAA game played at GABP in its 11th season as the home of the Reds.The Reds Collegiate Invitational is an opportunity to introduce college baseball to a larger fan base, as eight of the 10 highest attended games in collegiate baseball history have been played at Major League Baseball stadiums since the 2004 season."This is another example of the commitment by Reds ownership to the greater Cincinnati community," said Brian Cleary, UC baseball head coach. "Our players are excited about the opportunity to play a heated rival in a major-league venue. This is a significant event in the development of UC baseball as we will have an opportunity to introduce our program and college baseball to an even greater number of people. I know that all associated with this game are anxious to play in front of as many baseball fans as possible. Our community can make this a game that is noticed across the nation."

NOW PITCHING FOR UC ...Game 1 of the Louisville series will feature redshirt freshman RHP Connor Walsh, who made his collegiate debut on Feb. 17 at Florida Atlantic after sitting out the entire 2012 season due to arm surgery.Walsh allowed three earned runs on four hits with one strikeout and three walks in 3 2-3 innings at FAU.On March 16 vs. Western Michigan, Walsh got his first career win, going 7 1-3 innings, allowing five hits, just one earned and a career-high seven strikeouts.In his most recent start on March 28 at St. John's, Walsh allowed five earned runs on three hits and three walks with one strikeout in six innings pitched. On the season, Walsh owns a 4.28 ERA in 33.2 innings with 15 walks and 23 strikeouts. He ranks sixth in the BIG EAST in opponent batting average (.208) and fewest hits allowed (25).Cincinnati's starter in Game 2 of the series will be freshman right-hander Mitch Patishall, who will be making his fifth start of the season.Patishall, who was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 36th round of the 2012 MLB First-Year Player Draft, owns a 4.91 ERA in six games this season while striking out 12 batters in 18 1/3 innings. Sunday's starting pitcher for the Bearcats is to be determined.

OPPONENT BREAKDOWNLouisville went 41-22 overall in 2012, including 18-9 in BIG EAST Conference play, which was good for a share of the league title.The Cardinals were picked to finish first in the 2013 BIG EAST coaches poll and were ranked preseason No. 4 by Baseball America.So. P Jared Ruxer, Jr. P Jeff Thompson, Jr. OF Adam Engel and Jr. DH Jeff Gardner were each named 2013 preseason all-BIG EAST selections.

THE SERIES VERSUS LOUISVILLECincinnati and Louisville have played 176 ballgames all time.The Cardinals own a 91-84 advantage in the all-time series (the May 8, 1941 game has no record).The first meeting occurred April 18, 1924, with UC winning 13-6 in Louisville, Ky.Louisville has won the last four meetings.Last year, UofL swept the Bearcats in a three-game series March 23-25 in Louisville, Ky.

REDS AND BEARCATSThe Cincinnati Reds and UC have been intertwined in the local baseball scene for more than 100 years.The Reds and Bearcats have played six exhibition games from 1893 to 1922. The Reds have won all six contests. The most recent matchup took place on April 10, 1922 with the Reds winning 19-14.Glenn Sample, who was UC baseball's head coach from 1961-1981 and left the school as the all-time winningest coach, served as the Reds official scorer from 1980 through 2008.The Reds have selected 10 Bearcats since the start of the amateur draft began, including one in each of the past two seasons (Dan Jensen, RHP, 2011 and Christian McElroy, RHP, 2012).

UC ANNOUNCES SCHOLARSHIP ENHANCEMENTSThe March 19 announcement by Bearcats AD Whit Babcock that the UC will reinstate and increase funding to its Olympic sports scholarship programs is monumental news, not just for the programs which previously lost scholarship funding, but it's additionally momentous to the UC baseball program."This is quite possibly the most significant development affecting the UC baseball program during my time at UC. This plan removes the largest obstacle we have faced and will allow us to pursue players in the same fashion as those schools with which we compete," said Brian Cleary, UC baseball head coach.Beginning in the fall of 2013-14, UC will implement an aggressive plan to ultimately offer the full NCAA complement of grant-in-aid scholarships to student-athletes in each of its 19 programs. "This clearly demonstrates that the University and its leadership are committed to excellence in all of our sports and that we intend to compete on the national stage," Cleary added. "There is no question that our baseball program will benefit from this plan."Due to fiscal constraints in 2009, the department previously reduced scholarship funding for a number of sports and eliminated all scholarships for three sports which included men's cross country, men's track and field, and men's swimming and diving.

GLASS NAMED TO BIG EAST HONOR ROLLJunior outfielder Justin Glass was named to the BIG EAST Conference weekly honor roll on March 25 for his performance in four games.Glass batted an impressive .444 (8 for 18) with two runs scored and five RBIs while slugging .444 and reaching base at a .474 clip in four contests versus Northern Kentucky and South Florida.For the year, Glass is tied for third in the BIG EAST in hits with six and also tied for third in RBIs with five during conference games. The 6-foot-2 slugger leads the Bearcats in batting average, RBIs, slugging percentage and hits.Glass is the second Bearcat to receive this honor in 2013 after freshman infielder Forrest Perron received the award March 4.

WHAT'S HAPP'NINFreshman infielder Ian Happ has reached base in the past 21 ballgames.Happ leads the BIG EAST Conference in walks (26) and is tied for fifth in the league lead in doubles (10).Happ also ranks third in the league in on-base percentage (.462) and tied for seventh in the conference in stolen bases with 11.He is third on the team with seven multi-hit ballgames.